Afterlife
by PFTones3482
Summary: Companion piece to Fighting for Danville. What happened to everyone who was killed in the battle? One-shot.


**AFTERLIFE**

 **So I decided to write this companion piece so you can see Phineas' initial reaction to death. You need to read Fighting for Danville before this.**

 **I don't own Phineas and Ferb.**

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GENERAL POV

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"So this is the afterlife, huh?" Phineas muttered, getting to his feet shakily and brushing off his shorts as he looked around.

The air around him was foggy from the ankles down and the sky above him was a dull gray color. If Phineas could have, he would have made an invention to add color to the place. But without Ferb…

Phineas swallowed a sob and pressed his hands to his eyes quickly. He knew he was a goner as soon as his foot had slipped from the roof of City Hall. His bounce had worn off, there was an alien on top of him, and he couldn't survive a fall from that height in normal circumstances. His only regret had been that he hadn't gotten to say a better goodbye to his brother and sister.

Shaking his head, Phineas turned on his heel in a slow circle, vaguely realizing that his leg was totally normal and he looked as if the attacks had never happened. That was nice, at least. He didn't have to stumble through the afterlife on a half burned leg.

As he turned around, something in the distance caught his eyes. It looked like a city sky line. Since he had nothing else to do for the rest of his life (or after life), Phineas shrugged and started trudging towards the sight, tucking his hands in his pockets and looking around to see what else he could find.

As he got closer to the sky line, he realized with a start that he could recognize some of the buildings. His heart racing (or maybe the memory of his heart), Phineas broke into a run and sprinted into the city, noting that _yes,_ this was a replica of Danville.

He slowed as he neared what would have been his street in the real world and tentatively crept towards his house, standing in front of it for a long time before finally working up the nerve to go inside.

The door creaked ominously and Phineas flinched at the sound, looking around the living room nervously. "Hello? Anyone here?" The only thing worse than dying would be if he was stuck in the memory of his hometown alone.

No such thing happened though; footsteps moved from the kitchen and for a long second Phineas and Linda just stared at one another in disbelief. "Phineas?" the woman finally whispered.

Phineas' lower lip quivered. "Mom."

He darted into her arms and they hugged for a long time. When Linda finally pulled back, her eyes were sad. "Oh honey. I'm sorry you had to end up here. Do you understand what-?"

"Yeah," Phineas said softly, glancing at the floor. "I know I'm dead."

Linda flinched and ruffled his hair. "Are Candace and Ferb and your father-?"

She trailed off and Phineas nodded, a small smile returning to his face. "They're okay, last I saw. Ferb and Isabella were getting rid of the alien invasion."

Linda's brow furrowed and she tilted her head. "Aliens?"

Phineas blinked. "Oh yeah, you didn't know. Aliens invaded the city. A lot of people died," he whispered, looking back down at the floor.

Linda squeezed his shoulders tightly. "I know. They all ended up here. I swear at least half the town is here, which is…awful. I've been looking after Baljeet and Buford, and I made Irving and his brother move into Isabella's house. That's where Buford and Baljeet are now."

Phineas' head shot up, his eyes filling with tears. "Buford and Baljeet? Irving? They're all here? What about Ginger and Gretchen?"

Linda nodded. "Yes, they're here too. Gretchen's mother took Ginger in. I take it you want to go see them."

Phineas nodded sheepishly and his mother leaned over to plant a kiss on his cheek. "Go, honey. I'll be here when you get back."

He gave her a hug and darted out the door and across the street, the path worn into his mind after years of crossing the street to go hang out with Isabella. He hesitated on the doorstep, so used to just walking inside without knocking that he wasn't quite sure what to do.

The sound of splashing reached his ears from behind the house and Phineas cautiously tiptoed around to the gate, peeking into the backyard and catching his breath in his throat.

Buford had just cannon-balled into the water, sending a wave up and over the side and effectively hitting Baljeet in the face. Irving was sitting on the edge of the pool with his feet in the water, Ginger and Gretchen sitting next to him. Albert was spread out on a lawn chair and Jenny was in another, handing Django a pair of goggles.

Phineas' chest was tight and he leaned just a little too far, stumbling into Buford's line of sight as the bully hauled himself out of the pool. The burly boy froze and nearly slipped back into the water. "Dinnerbell?"

Everyone in the yard fell silent and turned to stare at Phineas. Giving a small smile, Phineas pushed open the gate and waved sheepishly. "Uh…hey."

Baljeet tackled him in a hug and was soon followed by Buford. Phineas laughed and returned it, moving around the yard and hugging everyone tightly, even Albert. When he stopped in front of Buford and Baljeet again, they gave him sad smiles. "We are happy to see you," Baljeet assured him, "but disappointed that it had to be in this way."

Phineas glanced down at the ground. "Yeah, me too."

Buford tilted his head. "Did you win?" he asked anxiously.

Phineas looked up with a twinkle in his eyes. "Yeah. We did."

Cheering erupted in the yard and Buford clapped Phineas on the back enthusiastically. "Good. Is my Ma okay?"

Phineas winced. "I uh…I don't know. I only know we won because I saw Ferb and Isabella start the alien machine right um…right before I fell off the roof of City Hall."

Everyone flinched and sent Phineas sympathetic looks. "Are you guys okay though?" he asked.

Baljeet nodded. "Yes. At first it was a bit confusing, because I was one of the first ones here and the only person I knew was your mother, but when everyone in the fights started popping up and we got the whole story, we realized what had happened."

Irving adjusted his glasses. "How was everyone? Before you came here, I mean. We have the story from Buford, but only know as much as he does."

Phineas glanced sideways at Buford. "So…there's not much left to tell. After you died, Buford, Candace kind of lost it and we went into action soon after. She didn't want to wait any longer. She didn't uh…she didn't want to lose anyone else."

Buford nodded and ran a hand over his chin. After a long minute of silence, Jenny spoke up. "So…I know this is a pretty annoying situation to be in…but we can still make the best of it, right?"

Phineas grinned at her. "Absolutely. But…is there a way to check in on everyone still alive?"

Albert shrugged. "We don't know. We've all gone searching for something that might help, but we don't think that we can just look onto Earth normally."

Phineas chewed on his lip. "As much as I wish Ferb was here, I'm glad he isn't. But we are all really smart. Maybe we can make something to keep an eye on them."

Django put a gentle hand on Phineas' shoulder. "We will, Phineas. But for now, I think we need to worry about ourselves and not worry about them. Candace and Ferb can handle it. You know they can, I know they can. I saw Candace in action; I believe in her to take control for now. If you see them now you'll just worry more."

"He's right," Gretchen confirmed. "We'll check on them when we think everything has calmed down. For now, you deserve a break. Join us?"

Phineas looked from his friends and to the pool and back. A small smile slid across his face as he nodded. "Yeah all right. I'll join."

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So life-or afterlife-went on. Buford and Baljeet finally figured out their feelings for each other and got together and even though none of them ever aged, they all felt much older. They even realized that they could turn into any age they had previously been, and Irving, Albert, and Gretchen realized that their eyesight had become perfect (though Irving kept the frames of his glasses for aesthetic purposes).

Phineas, Buford, Baljeet, Ginger, Gretchen, and Django all worked together to build a machine that would allow them to look into the living world and keep an eye on their families. They checked in at least twice a week, sharing in the joys and sadness of everyone on earth. They all even agreed that Perry, Pinky, and Ferb were right for dismantling the time machine.

Younger kids that had died, like Suzy, were quickly taken in until their grandparents or another relative could be found. The afterlife was vast, but everyone was easily able to stay in contact since it wasn't actually as primitive as it looked; there were phones and a mail system. Suzy stayed with Phineas and his mom until Linda was able to call her grandmother who lived across the town, and Buford and Baljeet continued to stay with Phineas and Linda.

Phineas continued inventing with his friends, though there was always an ache in his chest when he would turn to the spot next to him to ask Ferb a question, only to remember that he wasn't there.

Eventually, all of the Flynn-Fletcher grandparents found their way to Danville, and then Dr. Doofenshmirtz stopped by one day for coffee (THAT was a surprisingly teary reunion for Phineas and Buford), and then Lawrence showed up and literally swept Linda off of her feet.

And years later, many years later, when Candace and Ferb and Isabella and Stacy and Jeremy and everyone else joined them there and they all took on the ages they were when they were separated, Phineas knew that no one would ever stop smiling.

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 **I liked writing that ending. It was cute. Yes.**

 **Reviews would be awesome!**


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